City Deals

Lord Wallace of Saltaire: My Rt Honourable friend the Minister for Cities and the Constitution (Greg Clark) has made the following Written Ministerial Statement:
	Following the successful completion of the first wave of City deals in July 2012, with the ‘Core Cities’ the Government committed to work with a further 20 Cities and their wider areas to negotiate a second wave of City Deals in October 2012.
	Over recent months I have been in negotiation with the Solent Local Enterprise Partnership; Southampton City Council; Portsmouth City Council; Hampshire County Council and local authorities that are members of the Partnership for Urban South Hampshire (Eastleigh, East Hampshire, Fareham, Gosport, Havant, Isle of Wight, New Forest, Test Valley and Winchester).
	The Southampton and Portsmouth City Deal will maximise the economic strengths of these two coastal cities and the wider Solent area, by supporting further growth in the area’s maritime, marine and advanced manufacturing sectors.
	Over its lifetime, by bringing together the efforts and resources of local businesses, local councils and the Government, the Solent Local Enterprise Partnership estimates that the deal will deliver:
	• Over 4,700 permanent new jobs particularly focused on marine, maritime and advanced manufacturing sectors;• Over 13,000 construction jobs;• Unlock 107,000 sq metres of new employment floor space with a focus on supporting growth in the marine, maritime and advanced manufacturing sectors;• Support small and medium enterprises to grow through better business support over the next three years;• Provide £115m of local and national public sector investment; and• Lever in over £838m of private sector investment into the area through site development, skills and unemployment schemes; and business support services.

Correction to Lords Oral Question

Baroness Verma: An error has come to light in the answer to an oral question asked by Lord Forsyth of Drumlean.
	The Hansard reference is 17 Oct 2013, column 646
	As part of the answer the Minister said;
	Lord Teverson (LD): My Lords, does the Minister agree that not enough determination has been shown by the official regulator, Ofgem, or by our competition authorities over the past decade to make sure that there is sufficient competition in the energy market, which would at last favour consumers? Would she nudge those organisations to grow some teeth and perhaps bare them, so that consumers get a fairer deal out of energy prices?
	Baroness Verma: My Lords, my noble friend makes a very important point. We have seen the need for a robust regulator, which is why we have given Ofgem additional powers to investigate and penalise any market manipulation in the wholesale markets. We are also giving it extra powers to ensure that there is greater competition in the marketplace. I reassure my noble friend that under this Government there has been an increase in smaller generators being able to partake in the energy market, from three to seven. We want to see greater competition because we think that competition, not freezing energy prices, is the way to encourage lower prices.
	The Minister should have said:
	Baroness Verma: My Lords, my noble friend makes a very important point. We have seen the need for a robust regulator, which is why we have given Ofgem additional powers to investigate and penalise any market manipulation in the wholesale markets. We are also giving it extra powers to ensure that there is greater competition in the marketplace. I reassure my noble friend that under this Government eight new suppliers have entered the market. We want to see greater competition because we think that competition, not freezing energy prices, is the way to encourage lower prices.

Housing

Baroness Stowell of Beeston: My hon. Friend the Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government (Kris Hopkins) has made the following Written Ministerial Statement.
	I am publishing today, following consultation, a stock transfer manual for the period to 31 March 2015. The manual sets out the process for housing stock transfer and the criteria local authorities will need to meet where they propose, with the support of their tenants, to transfer their housing stock to a new or existing housing association landlord.
	Following consultation, we have introduced some additional flexibility for local authorities and tenants who wish to transfer their homes and provided some further clarification on how the Government will assess transfer applications to ensure that they represent good value for money for the taxpayer. Where that is the case and a stock transfer offers opportunities for growth locally through more private investment in new and existing affordable housing stock, then government financial support will be available.
	We expect transfer proposals brought forward under the terms of this manual to complete by March 2015. Resources are available from the Department for Communities and Local Government to write-off debt associated with the housing stock being transferred in this period
	It remains the case that transfers may only take place where that is the option favoured by a majority of tenants voting in a ballot. We also want to give tenants more opportunities to weigh up the benefits of transfer and lead the transfer process themselves.
	The Government will shortly be laying the associated secondary legislation before Parliament. It will outline how local authorities should co-operate with tenant groups which wish to explore transfer and commence the process of transferring ownership where this is the favoured option.
	Copies of the stock transfer manual and the analysis of responses to the consultation on the draft manual have been placed in the Library of the House and are available on the Department’s website.

NHS England: Mandate

Earl Howe: My Rt hon Friend the Secretary for Health (Jeremy Hunt) has made the following written ministerial statement. Today the Government has laid before Parliament the refreshed Mandate to NHS England for 2014-15. The refreshed Mandate will come into effect from 1 April 2014 and was developed following public consultation which ran from 5 July to 27 September.
	The Mandate sets an ambitious agenda to transform patient care and we expect NHS England to demonstrate significant progress against all the objectives by March 2015. To provide stability and enable the NHS to plan ahead, we have carried forward all existing 24 objectives. The Government has kept changes to an essential minimum to ensure the refreshed Mandate remains strategic, outcomes-focused and affordable within NHS England’s budget which is also set out in the Mandate for 2014-15.
	Where the Government has introduced changes, these focus on the priorities that will support the successful transformation of health and care services to meet the needs of an ageing population and the increasing prevalence of long-term physical and mental health conditions:
	- the vulnerable older people’s plan as a means for improving the health of the whole population and to provide excellent care for older people; - the addition of one new objective in relation to the system wide response to the Francis Inquiry recommendations; and- taking forward actions to deliver a service that values mental and physical health equally.
	The Government has included further ambitions on a limited number of areas to deliver the quality of care and treatment people need and expect. These areas are: reducing avoidable premature mortality;
	supporting people with dementia; improving patient experience (friends and family test); and making better use of resources.
	The Mandate also reflects the work being taking forward by NHS England to improve integrated care; addressing the failings witnessed at Winterbourne View private hospital; supporting a fair playing field for providers; improving outcomes for children and young people; and supporting innovation to improve patient care.
	Whilst the Mandate sets our vision over the long term, we also need to tackle immediate pressures. The Government previously announced its plans to handle pressures on A&E this winter and the allocation of £250 million funding to NHS England for distribution to the areas that need it most. The additional allocation requires an increase to the revenue budget for NHS England for 2013-14, and a revision to the current Mandate for the current will been laid before Parliament shortly reflecting this uplift in the budget only.
	Alongside the Mandate for 2014-15, we have published the Government’s response to the consultation and a refreshed version of the NHS Outcomes Framework 2014-15. Similar to the approach taken with the Mandate, we have kept changes to the NHS Outcomes Framework to an essential minimum.
	Copies of all these documents have been placed in the Library. Copies are available to hon Members from the Vote Office and to noble Lords from the Printed Paper Office.

Philippines: Typhoon Haiyan

Baroness Northover: My Rt. Hon Friend the Secretary of State for International Development has made the following statement.
	I would like to update the House on the UK’s response to Typhoon Haiyan in the Philippines.
	Typhoon Haiyan made landfall in the Philippines on 7 November and was one of the strongest storms on record. It has caused widespread devastation. Current estimates suggest that 10,000 have been killed in Tacloban alone and over 4.3 million have been seriously affected by the storm. These numbers are likely to increase as those responding to the aftermath of the typhoon gain greater access to affected areas.
	The Government of the Philippines ordered mass evacuations in advance of the storm and pre-positioned some humanitarian assistance around the country. However, the needs in the country are overwhelming and additional assistance has been requested in order to reach those in desperate need. The situation is also compounded by the residual impact of previous crises in the Philippines, such as an earthquake in October and the on-going conflict in Mindanao. The Government of the Philippines accepted an offer of assistance from the UN Humanitarian Coordinator.
	Typhoon Haiyan has caused significant infrastructural damage. Major roads have been affected and some remain impassable, hampering rescue and relief operations. Thirteen airports across the country have suspended
	operations. The main seaports remain closed. Power outages and communication interruptions are being experienced across a number of provinces which has raised concerns over access to water as pumps are now ineffective. The UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs has indicated that critical needs include shelter, food, health, WASH, camp management and logistics. The UN World Food Programme estimates that 2.5 million people may be in need of emergency food aid.
	The Prime Minister spoke with President Aquino of the Philippines on 10 November to offer UK assistance with the humanitarian response. DFID currently has a team of seven deployed to Manila with three more arriving today. I approved a £6 million aid package on 9 November for immediate life-saving humanitarian support. This included a £5 million allocation to DFID’s Rapid Response Facility which channels funding at speed to pre-registered NGOs and includes the bulk purchase of humanitarian kit with pre-approved suppliers. This will provide humanitarian aid for up to 500,000 people, including temporary shelter and clean water. The additional £1 million is for in-kind support including the provision of urgently-needed shelter and household items from the UK’s humanitarian stockpile. Five aircraft have been chartered from Dubai in order to transport this support. The funding will also fund the deployment of two public health specialists to work with the World Health Organisation to prevent the spread of infectious diseases.
	On 11 November, the Prime Minster announced that the UK would increase its assistance to a total of £10m . This includes a further £1m million for aircraft handling and airlift of humanitarian supplies, as well as the provision of 4x4s and mobile deployment kits, and an additional £3 million allocation for the Rapid Response Facility. As a further part of the UK response, HMS Daring will also redeploy to the affected region and will provide drinking water and a team of trained medics, as well as serve as a UK operating base, bringing helicopter airlift capacity.
	The Philippines Department of Health has made clear that there is an urgent need for extra medical assistance and as a result yesterday I activated the UK International Emergency Trauma Register (UKIETR). We are mobilising a 12 strong medical team of UK surgeons, doctors and paramedics.

Planning

Baroness Stowell of Beeston: My hon. Friend the Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government (Nick Boles) has made the following Written Ministerial Statement.
	The Government is committed to ensuring that planning applications and related consents are processed promptly. Local people and authorities should be at the heart of planning, but where councils persistently fail to meet statutory deadlines for making decisions
	on time, applicants will be given the option of asking the Planning Inspectorate to decide their proposal instead.
	Planning is a quasi-judicial process, and delays in making decisions are unfair both to local residents and local firms; justice delayed is justice denied. Individual applicants can already appeal directly to the Planning Inspectorate to have their application considered on grounds of non-determination (i.e. not determining an application within statutory deadlines).
	In addition section 1 of the Growth and Infrastructure Act 2013 has amended the Town and Country Planning Act 1990 (“the 1990 Act”) by inserting new sections 62A to 62C. Section 62A allows a planning application, or an application for reserved matters consent, to be made directly to the Secretary of State where the local planning authority has been designated by him, provided the planning application (or the application for reserved matters consent) is for major development.
	Applications made to the Secretary of State in this way will be submitted to and determined by the Planning Inspectorate, but the Act allows these to be ‘recovered’ for Ministers’ own decision, in a similar way to planning appeals.
	In the interests of transparency and consistency, decisions on whether to recover appeals are made with reference to published criteria. For planning applications made under section 62A the Secretary of State will employ the same criteria in deciding whether to recover the application for Ministerial decision. A policy statement setting out these criteria has been placed in the Library of the House.

Visas

Lord Taylor of Holbeach: My hon Friend the Minister for Immigration (Mark Harper) has today made the following Written Ministerial Statement:
	People who need permission to visit the UK and those who want to live, work or study here must pay a fee for their visa. It is important that we seek input into how we ensure that those who benefit directly from the immigration system and enhanced border control contribute appropriately to its costs in the future.
	I am therefore launching a targeted consultation looking at charging principles which will begin on 12 November and will last for three weeks. As part of the consultation we will be seeking views on how the Home Office charges customers and the services it provides.
	We will be seeking views from stakeholders who have an interest in the way fees are set, the consistency and complexity of fees and on premium services. We are also seeking views on proposals on administrative reviews and refunds and how the Home Office interacts with third parties.
	A copy of the consultation document will be placed in the House Library and on the gov.uk website.